Load carrier arrangement for a vehicle bed comprising an internal bed rail system

ABSTRACT

Load carrier mountable above a bed structure of a vehicle having an upper surface and an internal bed rail system is disclosed. The load carrier broadly includes an upright base support member, an internal rail clamping assembly, and a clamp adjustment assembly. The upright base support member rests upon the upper surface of the side wall of the bed structure and connects with the internal rail clamping assembly. The upright base support member has a first clamp surface for asserting a clamping force upon the upper surface of the side wall of the bed structure. The rail clamping assembly is releasably securable to the internal bed rail system and includes a second clamp surface for asserting a clamping force upon the internal bed rail system. The clamp adjustment assembly positionally adjusts the first clamping surface with respect to the second clamping surface between clamped and unclamped positions.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to load carriers for vehicleshaving bed structures, and more specifically, to vehicles having bedstructures comprising internal bed rail systems.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Load carriers, and particularly sports equipment carriers, for vehicleshaving bed structures are known devices for transporting cargo above thebed structure of a vehicle. Common uses of such load carriers caninclude the transport of generally elongate objects, such as ladders,piping, lumber, construction materials, etc. Likewise, sport relateduses of such load carriers can include the transport of canoes, kayaks,paddles and similar equipment. An example of a particularly commerciallysuccessful load carrier for a vehicle having a bed structure is Thule'sXSPORTER carrier.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1-3 of the present application, the XSPORTERcarrier broadly includes a plurality of upright base support memberseach configured for securing a generally vertically adjustable uprightmember. A pair of upright members is shown as securing a load bearingcrossbar member therebetween such that cargo can be set and securedthereon. Each upright base support member includes a generally flat,planar lower surface configured for resting and being clampably securedto the top rail of a truck bed side wall. Heretofore, top rails ofpickup truck beds were primarily formed from a single ply of relativelyrigid sheet metal bent upon itself to form a generally inverted J-shapedstructure forming a hollow. To clampably secure a base support member tothe top rail, a clamping assembly was used in conjunction with the basesupport member to apply a clamping force upon the upper and lowersurfaces of the top rail.

While the above-described XSPORTER carrier and associated clampingassemblies remain popular and successful, they are, however,occasionally incapable of securing load carriers upon some types of newvehicles; i.e., pickup trucks having new types of top rail structureand/or internal bed rail systems; examples include the 2006 TOYOTATACOMA, 2006 HONDA RIDGELINE, AND 2006 NISSAN TITAN AND FRONTIER pickuptrucks. In these examples the new top rail structures are not generallyJ-shaped and/or do not generally allow ready access to the upper andlower surfaces of the top rail. Similarly, current load carriers andclamping assemblies therefor are not configured for being secured to therails of the internal bed rail systems of these newer vehicles.

It should be appreciated that a primary reason that the vehiclemanufacturers have changed to these alternative configurations arepredominantly cost driven. To reach this goal, more of the truck bedcomponents, including those relied upon for securing load carriers ofthe type presently addressed, are made from plastic, composites andsimilar materials that are significantly more flexible than thetraditional sheet metal used in pickup bed construction. This loss instructural rigidity further contributes to the difficulties experiencedin mounting load carriers of the present type upon pickup trucks wherethese carriers have traditionally relied heavily upon the fortitude ofthe top rail of the truck bed.

An effect of the truck manufacturers using installed rail systems forreceiving such things as load carrier mountings in the pickup truck bedsis that the rail configurations on different makes and models of trucksnow vary widely. This presents a problem for load carrier manufacturersin that the use of universal mounting hardware is no longer possible anda wide variety of differently configured mounting hardware must beprovided in order to accommodate owners of different vehicles. Thismeans that this cost-saving move of the truck manufacturers has resultedin a cost increase to the load carrier manufacturers. Therefore, a goalof the present invention is to minimize this detrimental impact on loadcarrier manufacturers while at the same time providing a superior truckbed style load carrier to consumers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention satisfies the goals outlined above for the loadcarrier manufacturers, as well as the consumers that use such vehiclecarriers. In a first instance, the invention utilizes mounting hardwarecomprising three primary components. In this manner, the inventionenables the use of substantially universal top and bottom mount assemblypieces, with a intermediate third piece or component that acts as anadapter and which customizes the mounting assembly for a particularvehicle's configuration. The primary benefit of this strategy is thatonly one part of the mount needs to be supplied in differentconfigurations for accommodating the different truck bed designs.Therefore, the present invention in at least one embodiment takes theform of a mounting arrangement for a truck bed load carrier in which anarray of these intermediate pieces may be supplied with a complement ofstandard top and bottom pieces in order to provide a full array ofmounts for a number of differently configured pickup trucks. Not only isthis cost savings strategy beneficial to the load carrier manufacturers,but also to their distributors and retailers who can now maintainsmaller product inventory while accommodating the same number of vehicledesigns.

The present invention also derives a benefit from the more flexibleconstruction of the top of the truck's bed wall (top rail), as well inthe newly-employed rail assemblies. When the mounting assemblies of thepresent invention are tightened into a transporting configuration, asubstantially rigid component is established. This rigid component whichspans between the top rail and rail assembly provides a solid mountingfor the carrier components supported thereupon. Because the mountingassembly is anchored at both top and bottom locations, twist withrespect to the vehicle is substantially prevented. Moreover, theflexibility of the truck components causes them to bias outwardlyagainst the tightened mounting hardware in the transportingconfiguration thereby beneficially acting as a takeout mechanism forlooseness that may result in the interconnection between the carrier'smounting hardware and the vehicle during use.

In at least one exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides aload carrier that is mountable above a bed structure of a vehicle havingan upper surface and an internal bed rail system. The load carrierbroadly includes an upright base support member, an internal railclamping assembly, and a clamp adjustment assembly. The upright basesupport member is connected to the rail clamping assembly and forms afirst clamp surface for asserting a clamping force upon the uppersurface of the vehicle side wall, or top rail. The rail clampingassembly is releasably securable to a rail of the internal bed railsystem and forms a second clamp surface configured to assert a clampingforce upon the rail. The rail clamping assembly is also configured forsliding movement with respect to the upright base support member as wellas the rail of the internal bed rail system such that the load carrier'sposition relative to a long axis of the carrying vehicle may be readilyadjusted. The clamp adjustment assembly is configured for positionallyadjusting the first clamping surface with respect to the second clampingsurface between clamped and unclamped positions.

In a preferred embodiment, the first and second clamping surfaces applyinwardly directed clamping forces upon the upper surface of the top railand the upper surface of the rail of the internal bed rail system,respectively. In some embodiments of the invention the rail clampingassembly releasably connects to the upright base support member. In someembodiments of the invention the upright base support member and therail clamping assembly comprise a releasable interlocking jointcomprising a tenon and mortise wherein the tenon is fan-shaped. In someembodiments of the invention comprising an interlocking joint, the clampadjustment assembly is adjustable such that when the clamping force(s)is asserted, a pulling force is applied upon a member of the releasableinterlocking joint.

In some embodiments, the clamp adjustment assembly comprises a threadedfastener and threaded bore for adjusting between clamped and unclampedpositions, but could be formed from other structures that allow theassembly to be adjusted between clamped and unclamped positions. Forexample, straps and buckle assemblies could be utilized. In someembodiments, the rail clamping assembly and the upright base supportmember are configured for movement relative to one another such that therail clamping member can be adjusted along a length of the upright basesupport member. In some embodiments of the invention, a resilientstructure is disposed between the upper surface of the top rail andfirst clamp surface. In some embodiments, the resilient structure isformed from plastic, rubber, combinations thereof, or other resilientmaterials that may assist in preventing damage to the vehicle. In someembodiments, the resilient structure is a component of the vehicle;e.g., a portion of a bed liner and/or can be a component of the uprightbase support member; e.g., a rubber or plastic boot.

In some embodiments of the invention, the rail clamping assemblyincludes a foot member configured for substantial complementary fit witha portion of a rail of the internal bed rail system. In some embodimentsof the invention, a rail of the internal bed rail system has a generallyC-shaped cross-section, a generally I-shaped cross-section, a generallyL-shaped cross-section, or other shape, which allows a second clampsurface to be secured to the rail. In embodiments wherein the railassembly comprises a C-shaped cross section, the rail includes a pair ofgenerally parallel wall structures and a base wall structure, the basewall structure being secured to an inner side wall of the bed structuresuch that the parallel walls project substantially orthogonal from theside walls of the bed structure. In some embodiments, the rail clampingassembly is releasably securable to one of the generally parallel sidewall structures. In some embodiments of the invention, the rail clampingassembly is slidable along a length of a rail.

In some embodiments of the invention, the rail clamping assemblyincludes an upper rail clamping member and a lower rail clamping member,wherein the upper rail clamping member connects to the upright basesupport member and the lower rail clamping member connects to the upperrail clamping member. In some embodiments, the upper rail clampingmember and the lower rail clamping member are configured for releasablyclampably securing a portion of a rail therebetween. In someembodiments, the upper rail clamping member and the lower rail clampingmember are configured for receiving a component of the clamp adjustmentassembly which can comprise a threaded adjustment rod. In someembodiments of the invention, the upper rail clamping member and thelower rail clamping member include a rotational arresting assembly forpreventing rotational movement between the two structures. In someembodiments the rotational arresting assembly comprises an abutment anda recess for receiving the abutment therein.

In some embodiments of the invention, the rail clamping assembly isreleasably connected to the upright base support member by a fastenerand in other embodiments the rail clamping assembly is integrallyconnected with the upright base support member.

In some embodiments of the invention, a rail of an internal bed railsystem is secured to a side wall of the bed structure such that it isgenerally parallelly disposed with respect to the upper surface of theside wall. In some embodiments of the invention, the upright basesupport member is releasably connected to the rail clamping assembly byan interlocking joint, and the upright base support member comprises afirst clamp surface for asserting an inwardly directed clamping forceupon the upper surface of the top rail. In some embodiments, the railclamping assembly is releasably secured to the rail and forms a secondclamp surface which asserts an inwardly directed clamping force upon therail and the clamp adjustment assembly adjusts the first clamp surfacewith respect to the second clamp surface between clamped and unclampedpositions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be more fully described by way of example withreference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a known type of load carrier systemsecured to a generally inverted J-shaped vehicle bed top rail;

FIG. 2 is a detailed perspective view of a known clamping assembly forsecuring a load carrier to a J-shaped vehicle bed top rail;

FIG. 3 is a partial cutaway view, taken generally along line 3-3 of FIG.1, which illustrates the mounting of a load carrier to a vehicle bed toprail using the know clamping assembly of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a load carrier configuredaccording to the present invention and secured to a vehicle (pickuptruck) having a bed top rail and internal bed rail system;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a clamping assembly configured accordingto the present invention for securing a load carrier to a vehicle havinga top rail upper surface and an internal bed rail system;

FIG. 6A is a partial cutaway view, taken generally along line 6-6 inFIG. 4, which illustrates a load carrier according to the presentinvention secured to a vehicle having a bed top rail and internal bedrail system;

FIG. 6B is a partial cutaway view of the load carrier of FIG. 6A, butillustrating the clamp adjustment assembly as being partially loosened;

FIG. 6C is a partial cutaway view of the load carrier of FIG. 6A, butillustrating the clamp adjustment assembly as being fully loosened fordisengagement;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are partial cutaway views illustrating portions of aload carrier according to the present invention secured to differenttypes of rails of vehicle bed internal bed rail systems; and,

FIGS. 8A and 8B are partial cutaway views which also show some internalfeatures and illustrate alternate embodiments of a load carrierconfigured according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention will now be described and disclosed in greaterdetail. It is to be understood, however, that the disclosed embodimentsare merely exemplary of the invention and that the invention may beembodied in various and alternative forms. Therefore, specificstructural and/or functional details disclosed herein are not to beinterpreted as limiting the scope of the claims, but are merely providedas an example to teach one having ordinary skill in the art to make anduse the invention.

At the outset, a description of the structure of a known vehicle bedstructure and load carrier therefor is provided for further illustratingthe present invention. Referring to FIGS. 1-3, a load carrier 10 ofknown design is illustrated as being fixed to vehicle 12 having a bedstructure 14. In the illustrated embodiment, vehicle 12 is a commonpickup-type truck wherein bed structure 14 broadly comprises side walls16 and top rails 18 having upper surfaces 44 (see FIG. 3). Top rails 18are generally formed from a single ply of rigid sheet metal that is bentto form a generally inverted J-shaped structure.

Known load carrier 10 is illustrated as broadly comprising upright basesupports 20, clamping assemblies 22, upright members 24 and crossmembers 26. As illustrated more clearly in FIGS. 2 and 3, each ofclamping assemblies 22 includes upright base support 20, L-shaped clampmember 28 and clamp adjustment assembly 33. Upright base support 20includes lower surface 40, which is configured for resting upon uppersurface 44 of top rail 18, and connects with L-shaped clamp member 28 bymeans of tenon 30 and mortise 32. Clamp adjustment assembly 33 isthreadably received by L-shaped clamp member 28, and includes clamp foot34, threaded rod 35 and adjustment member 36. As illustrated moreclearly in FIG. 3, clamp foot 34 includes foot clamping surface 38 forabutting lower surface 42 of top rail 18. Consequently, when known loadcarrier 10 is secured upon a vehicle 12, the lower surface 40 of uprightbase support member 20 asserts a clamping force upon the upper surface44 of top rail 18 and clamping foot 34 asserts a clamping force upon thelower surface 42 of top rail 18.

Referring now to FIGS. 4-8B, load carrier 100 according to the presentinvention is illustrated as being detachably secured to vehicle 102having bed structure 104. Bed structure 104 can include side walls 106,top rails 108 and an internal rail system 110, for example, of a typecurrently commercially available in the 2006 TOYOTA TACOMA, 2006 HONDARIDGELINE, AND 2006 NISSAN TITAN AND FRONTIER pickup-type trucks.Internal rail system 110 generally includes one or more rails 111 (seealso FIGS. 7A-7B) disposed about the side walls 106 of the bed structureof the vehicle. In the embodiment illustrated, rails 111 are shown asbeing generally parallelly disposed with respect to the lower bedsurface of the bed structure and are secured upon a plurality of theside walls of the bed structure. Top rails 108 can include upper surface109 and lower surface 113, which surfaces are separated by gap 117;consequently, it can be difficult to secure known clamping assemblies,for instance those of the type previously described (clamping assembly22) and shown in FIGS. 1-3. Bed structure 104 can include bed liner 148,of which portions thereof can extend over top rails 108.

In a preferred embodiment, load carrier 100 is assembled from aplurality of components that include, but are not limited to: uprightbase support member 112, rail clamping assembly 114, clamp adjustmentassembly 140, upright member 115, and cross member 116. Generally,upright base support member 112 forms a first clamp surface 122 and railclamping assembly 114 forms a second clamp surface 123, which applyinwardly directed clamping forces upon the top rail of the vehicle bedstructure and a portion of a rail of an internal rail system 110,respectively.

Upright base support members 112 are generally provided for supportingthe load carrier upon the vehicle and also serving as base members forthe upright members 115 which extend vertically therefrom. Upright basesupport member 112 broadly comprises first clamp surface 122, which is agenerally planar surface that is configured for being rested upon, orabove, the upper surface 109 of top rail 108 of bed structure 104, andasserting an inwardly directed clamping force upon the top rail 108.Base support 112 further includes mortise 124 for releasably andslidably receiving rail clamping assembly 114 therein. In the embodimentillustrated, mortise 124 comprises a generally fan-shaped channel forreceiving complementarily shaped tenon 126 of rail clamping assembly114. In a preferred embodiment, mortise 124 extends along thelongitudinal length of the upright base support member 112 such that theupright base support member 112 and the rail clamping assembly 114 mayslide with respect to one another (when no clamping force is beingasserted).

Resilient material 150 can be disposed between first clamp surface 122of the upright base support member 112 and top rail 108 of the vehicleto prevent damage to the vehicle and assist in securing the load carrierthereupon. Resilient material 150 can be a component of the upright basesupport member 112, or may comprise a portion of a bed liner 148 asshown schematically in FIGS. 6A-6C. Preferably, resilient material 150is formed from plastic, rubber or other material.

Upright base support members 112 can be configured to fixedly secureupright members 115 thereto; e.g., as by means of welding, or can beconfigured to detachably secure the upright members thereto. Uprightmembers 115 are configured for securing cross members 116, which may befixedly attached thereto or detachably secured thereupon.

Rail clamping assemblies 114 are generally provided for detachablysecuring the upright support members 112 and applying an inwardlydirected clamping force upon rail 111 of a vehicle's internal railsystem 110 or similar structural members. In the embodiment illustrated,rail clamping assembly 114 comprises upper rail clamping member 118 andlower rail clamping member 120. Upper rail clamping member 118 issubstantially L-shaped and includes upper portion 119 and lower portion128. Upper portion 119 is generally configured for abutting a side wallof the upright base support member 112 and lower portion 128 isgenerally provided for releasably fastening lower rail clamping member120 and a portion of rail 111.

Intermediate upper portion 119 has a tenon 126 that is configured forbeing detachably and slidably received by mortise 124 of upright basesupport member 112. In the embodiment illustrated, tenon 126 isfan-shaped (dovetailed) such that it may be slidably received by thefan-shaped mortise 124. It should be appreciated that other shapes ofthe tenon 126 and mortise 124 may be utilized.

Lower portion 128 has a generally inverted U-shape and comprises footportion 132 and stud portion 130. Foot portion 132 is configured forbeing substantially complementarily received within recess 152 (seeFIGS. 6B-6C) of rail 111 such that rotational movement between the footand the rail can be prevented. Intermediate foot portion 132 and studportion 130 is a threaded bore for receiving therein a threaded portionof adjustment rod 142. In the illustrated embodiment, stud portion 130includes recess 134 for receiving the tongue, ridge or abutment 136 oflower rail clamping member 120 therein such that rotational movementbetween the upper rail clamping member and the lower rail clampingmember 120 is prevented by the splined arrangement. In the embodimentillustrated, recess 134 comprises an elongated channel that extendsalong the length of the stud portion and abutment 136 comprises a wallthat extends along the length of the lower rail clamping member 120,however, abutment 136 and recess 134 can comprise other structures; e.g.a pin member and bore.

Lower rail clamping member 120 is generally U-shaped and includes firstleg 133, which is configured for being releasably secured to rail 111and second leg 131, which is configured for mating engagement with studportion 130 of upper rail clamping member 118. Intermediate the firstand second leg 133, 131 is a bore 135 for receiving rod 142 of clampadjustment assembly 140 therethrough.

Clamp adjustment assembly 140 is generally provided for securing railclamping assembly 114 to a rail 111 of internal rail system 110 tothereby form a second clamp surface 123 as well as adjust the distancebetween the first clamp surface 122 and the second clamp surface 123such that an inwardly directed clamping force can be applied by theupright base support member 112 and the rail clamping assembly 114.Clamp adjustment assembly 140 generally comprises lower portion 128 ofupper rail clamping assembly 118, lower rail clamping assembly 120, andadjustment rod 142. As illustrated in the FIGS. 6A-6C, adjustment rod142 includes a threaded portion that is received by a threaded bore 144of the upper rail clamping assembly 118, and head portion 146 that abutsthe lower rail clamping assembly 120. Rotating adjustment rod 142 in adirection to cause tightening thus causes the upper rail clampingassembly 118 and the lower rail clamping assembly 120 to tighten uponone another such that rail 111 may be secured between foot 132 and firstleg 133.

As shown in FIGS. 6B-6C, the distance between the first clamp surface122 of the upright base support member 112 and lower portion 128 of theupper rail clamping member 118 is generally fixed (except for the amountof freedom allowed by the tenon 126 and mortise joint 124), or isadjustably fixable, to form gap 152 between foot portion 132 and rail111 when the clamping assembly 114 is in a resting state. Tighteningrail clamp adjustment assembly 140 causes the upper rail clamping member118 to be drawn in a downward direction toward the lower rail clampingmember 120 until they abut one another. Prior to their abutment,however, the downward movement of the upper rail clamping assembly 118causes tenon 126 to assert a generally downwardly directed force uponmortise 126, which causes upright base support member 112 and firstclamping surface 122 to move in a generally downward direction towardsecond clamp surface 123. Sufficient downward movement of the uprightbase support member 112, thus, causes first clamp surface 122 to apply adownwardly (inwardly) directed force upon resilient material 150 and/orbed liner 148 such that the upright base support member 112 can beclampably secured to top rail 108 of the bed structure 104.

It should be appreciated that while the figures illustrate that thedistance between first clamp surface 122 and lower portion 128 of theupper rail clamp member 118 is generally fixed (except for a limitedamount of freedom allowed by interlocking tenon and mortise joint), theinvention can be configured such that the distance therebetween isadjustable, primarily by exchange of the intermediate part 118.

Referring now to FIGS. 7A and 7B, it should also be appreciated thatwhile the present invention has been described as an assembly forsecuring a load carrier to a generally C-shaped rail 111 a of aninternal rail system wherein the rails have side walls 138 and base 137,which is secured to the sidewall of a bed of a vehicle, the presentinvention can be secured to rails 111 b and 111 c, which have generallyL-shaped and I-shaped structures, respectively. Also, as illustrated inFIGS. 8A and 8B, while the present invention has been primarilydescribed with upright base supporting member 112 and upper railclamping member 118 secured to one another by means of a tenon andmortise joint, other means for detachably securing the structures to oneanother are contemplated, e.g., threaded fasteners; alternatively, thetwo structures may be fixed, e.g., integral with respect to one another.

The beneficial attributes that have been described hereinabove regardingthe present invention's exploitation of the newly flexible nature of thepickup truck bed components upon which the mounting hardware of the loadcarrier is secured are primarily attributable to the manufacture of thetop rail 108 and a rail system 110 from plastic and similarly flexiblematerials.

The invention's capability for efficiently providing an array ofmounting arrangements for accommodating differently configured pickuptrucks can be appreciated from the several different exemplaryconfigurations disclosed for the interchangeable intermediate piece 118of the mounting assembly 114.

While the present invention has been illustrated and described in whatis deemed to be the preferred embodiments, it should be understood bythose having ordinary skill in the art that various changes andmodifications may be made to the invention without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it should be appreciatedby those skilled persons that the present invention is not to be limitedto the particular embodiments disclosed herein, but the affordedprotection is instead defined by the patent claims.

1. A load carrier mountable above a bed structure of a vehicle, said bedstructure comprising a side wall having an upper surface and at leastone rail of an internal bed rail system, said load carrier comprising:an internal rail clamping assembly; a clamp adjustment assembly; and anupright base support member connected to said internal rail clampingassembly, said upright base support member comprising a first clampsurface for asserting a clamping force upon said upper surface of saidside wall, said internal rail clamping assembly releasably securable tosaid at least one rail of said internal bed rail system and comprising asecond clamp surface for asserting a clamping force upon a lower surfaceof said at least one rail, and a third clamp surface for asserting aclamping force upon an upper surface of said at least one rail, saidclamp adjustment assembly configured for positionally adjusting saidfirst clamp surface with respect to said second clamp surface betweenclamped and unclamped positions.
 2. The load carrier of claim 1 whereinsaid first and second clamp surfaces apply an inwardly directed clampingforce.
 3. The load carrier of claim 1 wherein said clamp adjustmentassembly comprises a threaded fastener and threaded bore.
 4. The loadcarrier of claim 1 wherein said rail clamping assembly is releasablyconnected to said upright base support member by a fastener.
 5. The loadcarrier of claim 1 wherein said rail clamping assembly is integrallyconnected to said upright base support member.
 6. The load carrier ofclaim 1 wherein a resilient structure is disposed between said uppersurface of said side wall and said first clamping surface.
 7. The loadcarrier of claim 6 wherein said resilient structure is a member selectedfrom the group consisting of plastic, rubber and combinations thereof.8. The load carrier of claim 7 wherein said resilient structure is acomponent of said vehicle.
 9. The load carrier of claim 7 wherein saidresilient structure is a component of said upright base support member.10. The load carrier of claim 1 wherein said rail clamping assemblycomprises an upper rail clamping member and a lower rail clampingmember, said upper rail clamping member connected to said upright basesupport member, said lower rail clamping member connected to said upperrail clamping member.
 11. The load carrier of claim 10 wherein saidupper rail clamping member and said lower rail clamping member comprisea rotational arresting assembly for preventing rotational movementtherebetween.
 12. The load carrier of claim 11 wherein said rotationalarresting assembly comprises an abutment member and a recess receivingsaid abutment member therein.
 13. The load carrier of claim 10 whereinsaid upper rail clamping member and said lower rail clamping member areconfigured for releasably clampingly securing a portion of said at leastone rail therebetween.
 14. The load carrier of claim 13 wherein saidupper rail clamping member and said lower rail clamping member areconfigured for receiving a component of said clamp adjustment assembly.15. The load carrier of claim 14 wherein said clamp adjustment assemblycomprises a threaded fastener.
 16. The load carrier of claim 1 whereinsaid rail clamping assembly is releasably connected to said upright basesupport member.
 17. The load carrier of claim 16 wherein when said clampadjustment assembly is adjustable such that when a clamping force isasserted upon said upper surface and said at least one rail, a pullingforce is applied upon a member of said releasable interlocking joint.18. The load carrier of claim 16 wherein said rail clamping assembly andsaid upright base support member are configured for movement relative toone another such that said rail clamping member is adjustable along alength of said upright base support member.
 19. The load carrier ofclaim 16 wherein said upright base support member and said rail clampingassembly comprise a releasable interlocking joint.
 20. The load carrierof claim 19 wherein said releasable interlocking joint comprises a tenonand mortise.
 21. The load carrier of claim 20 wherein said tenon isfan-shaped.
 22. The load carrier of claim 1 wherein said rail clampingassembly comprises a foot member configured for substantialcomplementary fit with a portion of said at least one rail.
 23. The loadcarrier of claim 22 wherein said at least one rail has a generallyI-shaped cross-section.
 24. The load carrier of claim 22 wherein said atleast one rail as a generally L-shaped cross section.
 25. The loadcarrier of claim 22 wherein said rail clamping assembly is slidablealong a length of said at least one rail.
 26. The load carrier of claim22 wherein said at least one rail has a generally C-shapedcross-section.
 27. The load carrier of claim 26 wherein said at leastone rail comprises a pair of generally parallel side wall structures anda base wall structure, said base wall structure securable to an innerside wall of said bed structure.
 28. The load carrier of claim 27wherein said rail clamping assembly is releasably securable to one ofsaid generally parallel side wall structures.
 29. A load carriermountable above a bed structure of a vehicle, said bed structurecomprising a side wall having an upper surface and at least one rail ofa internal bed rail system secured to a side wall of said vehicle, saidat least one rail being generally parallelly disposed with respect tosaid upper surface, said load carrier comprising: an internal railclamping assembly; a clamp adjustment assembly; an upright base supportmember releasably connected to said rail clamping assembly by aninterlocking joint, said upright base support member comprising a firstclamp surface for asserting a inwardly directed clamping force upon saidupper surface of said side wall, said rail clamping assembly releasablysecured to said at least one rail and comprising a second clamp surfacefor asserting an inwardly directed clamping force upon a lower surfaceof said rail, and a third clamp surface for asserting a clamping forceupon an upper surface of said at least one rail, said clamp adjustmentassembly configured for positionally adjusting said first clampingsurface with respect to said second clamping surface between clamped andunclamped positions.
 30. A load carrier mounting assembly (114)configured to securely interconnect a pickup bed load carrier (100) to apickup truck bed (104) wherein the bed (104) includes a plurality ofside walls (106), a plurality of top rails (108) and an internal railsystem (110) mounted internally to at least one of the side walls (106)below a respective top rail (108) so that an outwardly projecting flange(138) of the rail system (110) projects inwardly into a bed spacedefined by the side walls (106), said load carrier mounting assembly(114) comprising: a clamp assembly (118, 120) configurable between areleased configuration and a flange clamped configuration bymanipulation of a clamp adjustment assembly (140), said clamp assembly(118, 120) establishing a securement point of said load carrier mountingassembly (114) to the pickup truck bed (104) to an upper surface and alower surface of the internal rail system (110) in the flange clampingconfiguration.
 31. The load carrier mounting assembly (114) as recitedin claim 30, wherein the internal rail system (110) is generallycross-sectionally C-shaped.
 32. The load carrier mounting assembly (114)as recited in claim 30, wherein the internal rail system (110) isgenerally cross-sectionally I-shaped.
 33. The load carrier mountingassembly (114) as recited in claim 30, wherein the internal rail system(110) is generally cross-sectionally L-shaped.
 34. The load carriermounting assembly (114) as recited in claim 30, wherein said clampassembly (118, 120) further comprises two jaws (132, 133) between whichthe outwardly projecting flange (138) of the rail system (110) is pinchsecured in the flange clamped configuration.
 35. The load carriermounting assembly (114) as recited in claim 34, wherein said two jaws(132, 133) of said clamp assembly (118, 120) have a splinedinterconnection therebetween in the flange clamped configuration whichprevents relative rotational movement between said two jaws (132, 133).36. The load carrier mounting assembly (114) as recited in claim 35,wherein said splined interconnection between said two jaws (132, 133) isa tongue-in-groove configuration.
 37. The load carrier mounting assembly(114) as recited in claim 30, said load carrier mounting assembly (114)further comprising: an upstanding portion (119) that affects an abutmentwith a top rail (108) of the pickup truck bed (104) at a locationsubstantially above said clamp assembly (118, 120) in the flangeclamping configuration.
 38. The load carrier mounting assembly (114) asrecited in claim 37, said load carrier mounting assembly (114) furthercomprising: an upright support member (112) interconnected with saidupstanding portion (119), said upright support member (112) having alower abutment surface (122) that abuts a top surface of the top rail(108) of the pickup truck bed (104), including at a locationsubstantially above said clamp assembly (118, 120) in the flangeclamping configuration.
 39. The load carrier mounting assembly (114) asrecited in claim 38, wherein said load carrier mounting assembly (114)engages the pickup truck bed (104) at at least two locations in theflange clamping configuration and each engagement location resistsrelative motion between said load carrier mounting assembly (114) andthe pickup truck bed (104).
 40. The load carrier mounting assembly (114)as recited in claim 38, wherein said load carrier mounting assembly(114) constitutes a slack take-up device in the flange clampingconfiguration with the pickup truck bed (104) exerting an expansionforce within said load carrier mounting assembly (114) in the flangeclamping configuration.